Guwahati, Mar 30: After the debacle suffered by the All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Badruddin Ajmal-led party is now looking at the forthcoming panchayat polls in the state as an opportunity to revive its electoral fortunes.

In an interaction with The Assam Tribune, AIUDF general secretary Haidor Hussain Bora asserted that the party will contest the panchayat polls on its own and not go for an alliance or tie-up with other outfits.

"The 2024 Lok Sabha poll results were undoubtedly a big setback for us. We committed some errors, and that impacted the outcome. The panchayat polls are very crucial for us. We believe that the panchayat elections could help us revive our party electorally. We are working in that direction, and that is a primary aim of our party. However, at the same time, while we may have fared badly in the Lok Sabha elections, our core support base remains intact to a great extent. We just need to regain our support in those areas where the Congress and other parties made some inroads. That process is on," Bora said.

He added, "During the panchayat polls, our entire party network, including the frontal organisations, will get active. There will be regular interactions with the electorate and big public outreach programmes. Therefore, we are of the opinion that the rural elections could help us regain our old strength."

The AIUDF has already started various activities related to the panchayat elections.

"Application forms for candidature have been collected from the head office by the party's district and constituency committees and distributed among members who aspire to contest the elections. Due to the recent Assembly session and the ongoing month of Ramadan, we refrained from organising public meetings. However, Iftar gatherings were held by our party at various places," Bora said.

AIUDF is going to organise public meetings in all the districts and constituencies after Eid.

"Besides the panchayat polls, we are also activating our organisation for the 2026 Assembly elections. In addition, this time the elections to the gaon panchayats (GPS) will be held without party symbols, even as symbols will be used at the anchalik panchayat (AP) and zila parishad (ZP) levels. We are formulating our electoral strategy by factoring this aspect," said the AIUDF general secretary.

AIUDF will contest the panchayat polls on its own.

"We have decided against having any tie-ups or alliances. In places where we do not field our party's candidates, we shall extend support to other like-minded opposition parties. But there will be no formal alliance with other parties," Bora said.

The party is mainly concentrating on Dhubri, South Salmara-Mankachar, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Darrang, Nagaon, Morigaon, Hojai, Goalpara, and the Barak Valley districts for the elections.

Among the main issues the party will highlight during the election campaign are alleged corruption in panchayats, flood and erosion, agriculture sector distress, detention camps, and alleged discrimination in the implementation of government schemes like the allotment of PMAY houses and Orunodoi.

"In addition, we are also going to highlight panchayat-specific matters in each area," Bora said.

By

Pranjal Bhuyan